The launch of the new web and mobile guide took place on Monday 10 September at an event held at the Museum of Science and Industry Manchester (MSIM), attended by over 200 representatives from restaurants all over the region.

Since the launch, social media has been abuzz with support from chefs, restaurants and food lovers pleased to finally see a guide which celebrates the best the North has to offer, acting as an alternative to the majority of south east-centric restaurant guides.

Simon Rogan’s L’Enclume ultimately claimed the number one spot, with Moor Hall, run by L’Enclume’s former head chef Mark Birchall, coming a close second. Michael O’Hare’s Man Behind The Curtain in Leeds placed third, while The Moorcock from Sowerby Bridge took fourth, and Fraiche from the Wirral took fifth.

Michael O’Hare’s Man Behind The Curtain in Leeds placed third

The new northern guide 'loosely spans' the North West and West Yorkshire, with restaurants from Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Lancashire, Cumbria and Cheshire joined by those from within the Confidential catchment areas in York, Harrogate, Sheffield and Leeds.

The inclusive Top 100 list features a variety of dining establishments; from Michelin star-winners like The Box Tree and Fischer's Baslow Hall, to Indian curry and street food venues (Bundobust, Prashad), steakhouses (Hawksmoor, Stockdales), bistros (Skosh, Gimbals) and gastro pubs (Freemasons at Wiswell, The Hinchcliffe Arms).

Greater Manchester turned out to be the best performing region, with 45 entries in the top 100; however, its restaurants do fail to break the top five. Yorkshire is the next highest ranked county, with twenty entries, while Merseyside scoops third with thirteen.

Vice and Virtue also made the cut

The Top 100 was revealed at a launch event at MSIM

Following Man Behind The Curtain, the highest ranking Yorkshire restaurants were The Moorcock in Sowerby Bridge (4th), the Box Tree in Ilkley (8th), Home in Leeds (12th) and Skosh in Sheffield (18th).

Other Leeds restaurants to make the Top 100 include Stockdales, Crafthouse, Vice & Virtue, Ox Club, Tharavadu and The Swine That Dines.

York's Joro (22nd) and Arras (24th) also featured in the Top 30, as did The Burlington at the Devonshire Arms in Skipton (26th).

Meanwhile, independent and affordable operations continue to challenge the more traditional establishments, with casual and cheap eats restaurants accounting for more than half the Top 100, while the 48 entries from rural and suburban locations – such as The White Rabbit in Todmorden and The Hinchliffe Arms, Hebden Bridge – show it’s no longer all about central city locations.

How it looks:

Confidentials publisher Mark Garner said: “The North West food scene is increasingly evolving and thriving, outperforming much of the UK. Yet the region, and the North in general, always feels underrepresented in most major restaurant guides. And that just won’t do.

“We’ve published thousands of restaurant reviews over the last seventeen years, and have been looking for a way to collect all that hard earned knowledge together to create something new and, most importantly, something useful. We think we’ve achieved that with the Top 100 Restaurants in the North West.”

The new guide has been compiled by a panel, which includes Confidential’s team of restaurant critics, independent writers and food industry experts. The rankings have been allocated using Confidential’s Top 100 scoring system, taking into account Confidential’s own scored reviews (where appropriate), the panel’s visits and revisits, and the collective ratings of other trusted guidebooks and critics.

“What this guide shows is that there is an array of talent and creativity in the region, producing some exciting and top quality food,” added Mark Garner, “but the competition is tough out there, so the top 100 will need to stay on their toes to keep their place on the list.”